Languages

Unfortunately, we did not have the opportunity to spend a lot of time teaching and learning face-to face at school this term. But there are still numerous noteworthy activities that happened in Languages throughout Term 3. 

PASCH project

German students in Year 7 participated in a global PASCH project at the end of Term 2. Staying connected in a global pandemic isn’t easy. As a member of the global network of PASCH schools – Partner Schools for the Future, Box Hill High School has enjoyed access to scholarships for language courses in Germany as well as German native-speakers coming to Box Hill High School to work as language assistants. The pandemic has put a stop to these opportunities but not all connections have been severed. PASCH is still organising global projects to promote cooperation between schools offering German worldwide. Using language skills to create connections to other communities brings authenticity into the classroom and hopefully provides motivation for students to maintain their language learning. 

Throughout the year, all Year 7 and Year 8 German classes will be participating in the global PASCH Cotton Bag Project. As part of the project, Box Hill High School was partnered with several schools in Russia and Brazil. Students will be decorating environmentally friendly cotton bags with pictures depicting their Australian home and culture and exchange them with students in the assigned partner schools. In addition, students are using their German skills to write letters and introduce themselves to their partners. At the end of Term 2, the first group of Year 7 students completed their cotton bags and created some stunning designs. Have a look at their amazing work! 

Queen Victoria Market Excursion

One lucky group of Year 8 German students attended an excursion to Queen Victoria Market during the first week of Term 3.  Please see Ruby McIver’s report on the event:

In the first week of term 3, my German class had the opportunity to go to the Queen Victoria Market. The purpose of this excursion was to speak some German and see authentic German food. We took a train into the city, then walked from the station to the market. We were given activity booklets upon arrival which were filled with questions, and we had to go to different food stalls to answer them. We enjoyed looking at the amazing food on display such as different meats, spices, and cheeses. There were foods from different cultures there as well, such as Gözleme from Turkey. Once we had finished the booklet, we were aloud to look around the other sections of the Market. Around lunchtime, we finished up at the market and walked back to the train station to go back to school. It was a great experience! - Ruby McIver, 8B 

Unfortunately, the second visit had to be cancelled due to the start of another lockdown. 

Year 10 & 11 Update

German students in Y10 and Y11 have been participating in a joint PASCH project with all other PASCH schools in Australia. Students from these schools are writing a joint comic book in German that will be launched and published in Term 4. 

Look out for more information in the next newsletter!

Year 12 Update

Y12 Languages students are currently very busy preparing for their oral exams in October. In preparation for that, students participated in Oral Mock Exams to fine tune their conversation skills and discuss their chosen topic at depth. We wish all students the best of luck for their oral exams! 

Despite another round of remote learning, I am amazed how well students have engaged in online classes and continued to work in such a focused manner. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to students for their engagement and to parents for their continued support. I am grateful for every student who greats me with their camera on. It has been a pleasure to see your faces and sometimes your pets on screen. Learning a language is about communication and staying in touch and communicating with each other can makes this situation a little more bearable. 

We wish everyone a restful holiday, and we hope to see you in person soon.